Because the 6th Commandment says "Thou shalt not kill" and not "Thou shalt not kill humans", why doesn't the Catholic Church require all of its members to be vegetarian? Meat production requires killing. If the Church is pro-life, then it should be pro-life in every way.

Answer by Judie Brown on 11/15/2017:

Anonymous

The Catechism of the Catholic Church is very clear that "THOU SHALT NOT KILL" applies
to human beings created in the image and likeness of God. See this quote:

THE FIFTH COMMANDMENT

You shall not kill.54
You have heard that it was said to the men of old, "You shall not kill: and whoever kills
shall be liable to judgment." But I say to you that every one who is angry with his brother
shall be liable to judgment.55

2258 "Human life is sacred because from its beginning it involves the creative action of
God and it remains for ever in a special relationship with the Creator, who is its sole end.
God alone is the Lord of life from its beginning until its end: no one can under any
circumstance claim for himself the right directly to destroy an innocent human being."56

I. RESPECT FOR HUMAN LIFE

The witness of sacred history

2259 In the account of Abel's murder by his brother Cain,57 Scripture reveals the
presence of anger and envy in man, consequences of original sin, from the beginning of
human history. Man has become the enemy of his fellow man. God declares the
wickedness of this fratricide: "What have you done? The voice of your brother's blood is
crying to me from the ground. And now you are cursed from the ground, which has
opened its mouth to receive your brother's blood from your hand."58

2260 The covenant between God and mankind is interwoven with reminders of God's gift
of human life and man's murderous violence:

For your lifeblood I will surely require a reckoning. . . . Whoever sheds the blood of man,
by man shall his blood be shed; for God made man in his own image.59
The Old Testament always considered blood a sacred sign of life.60 This teaching
remains necessary for all time.

2261 Scripture specifies the prohibition contained in the fifth commandment: "Do not slay
the innocent and the righteous."61 The deliberate murder of an innocent person is
gravely contrary to the dignity of the human being, to the golden rule, and to the holiness
of the Creator. The law forbidding it is universally valid: it obliges each and everyone,
always and everywhere.

2262 In the Sermon on the Mount, the Lord recalls the commandment, "You shall not
kill,"62 and adds to it the proscription of anger, hatred, and vengeance. Going further,
Christ asks his disciples to turn the other cheek, to love their enemies.63 He did not
defend himself and told Peter to leave his sword in its sheath.64

There is more if you go to this website address of the Catechism of the Catholic Church: